Tips For Cooking A Tasty Yet Inexpensive Thanksgiving Dinner

Last year the average cost of making Thanksgiving dinner was $49.87 according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), down from $50.11 the year prior. If you have hosted Thanksgiving dinner in the past you may know it can at times be a thankless job and can make a major impact on your budget. However, by delegating tasks, strategically shopping and setting a more ideal expectation it can be done very affordably. Here's how you can pull it off this year:

Back to the basics

First and foremost, avoid Pinterest, seriously avoid the need to live up to all the hype that can be found on Pinterest when it comes to Thanksgiving. We promise if your table doesn't look like Martha Stewart's it's okay. Your wallet will take a hit if you feel the need to serve all the specialty sides. If you can't avoid Pinterest then we encourage you to use it for inspiration only. Choose one dish as a challenge and go for it. Otherwise, go back to the basics of Thanksgiving: turkey, potatoes, corn, and stuffing. You get the idea.

Shop strategically

Shopping strategically mean starting now! Start looking at flyers for local grocery stores and compare the prices for all the ingredients you will need. You may find a great deal of time the best deals will not always be at the same store. If you are truly looking to do Thanksgiving inexpensively it may mean you will have to make a stop at a few stores. Create a strategy for your plan of attack while also taking into consideration your time as well. Is it really worth it to take a 30-minute drive across town to save .75? Probably not.

Delegate! Delegate! Delegate!

The idea that you should cook Thanksgiving dinner solo needs to be thrown aside. Save your sanity and pocketbook by delegating guests to help with the cooking. Encourage them to bring a beverage or a side to share. Avoid having them bring whatever, instead delegate things such as a desert, hot appetizer, or a side dish. This will avoid you having 10 deserts and no side dishes.

This Thanksgiving take the time to be truly thankful for all that you have in your life and try not to sweat the small stuff. Years from now no one will remember the food you served, but they will remember the fellowship that was had.